"Lionheart" is the second studio album by British singer-songwriter Kate Bush, released in November 1978, just nine months after the success of her debut album The Kick Inside. While Lionheart peaked at No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart (her only album to not reach the Top 5), it was certified Platinum, indicating strong sales of over 300,000 copies. However, the album received mixed reviews and Bush herself expressed dissatisfaction with the finished product, citing the rushed production process and the constraints placed on her.
The album's creation was heavily influenced by Bush’s desire to release new material quickly after the success of The Kick Inside. Much of the album's content was drawn from songs Bush had written in her teens, with only a few tracks, like "Symphony in Blue" and "Fullhouse," being newly composed. Lionheart was recorded at Super Bear Studios in France, marking Bush's only album recorded outside the UK. The production, handled again by Andrew Powell, was constrained by the pressure from EMI, and Bush later admitted she was inexperienced at the time to fully take charge of the album’s direction—something she would later do on all her subsequent albums.
While the album featured literary references, such as Peter Pan in "In Search of Peter Pan" and a nod to Arsenic and Old Lace in "Coffee Homeground," the tone of the songs varied widely. From the gothic "Hammer Horror" (about a Hammer Horror film production) to the show-business satire "Wow," Bush's signature style of dramatic storytelling remained intact, though the hurried nature of the album’s creation left her feeling less satisfied with its outcome.
Despite these frustrations, Lionheart performed well commercially, especially in the UK. The album produced two singles: "Hammer Horror," which didn’t chart as high as expected, and "Wow," which did much better, peaking at No. 14. In the U.S., the album initially went unreleased but was eventually issued in 1984, once Bush had gained more of a cult following. The album's cover, showing Bush dressed in a lion costume, is one of the more iconic images of her early career.
Kate Bush was dissatisfied with Lionheart primarily because the album was rushed, with EMI pressuring her to release new material quickly after the success of The Kick Inside. The time constraints left her feeling she couldn’t fully shape the album to her artistic vision. Additionally, Bush was still relatively inexperienced, and she felt that the production process lacked the freedom and creative control she desired. She later admitted that while it was a "bloody good album" considering the circumstances, she wasn’t happy with the final result.
Lionheart differed from The Kick Inside in both its creation and its reception. While The Kick Inside was a carefully crafted debut that established Bush as a unique talent in the music world, Lionheart was more rushed, as Bush was under pressure to deliver a follow-up quickly. Musically, Lionheart featured a mix of older songs (many written when she was a teenager) and some new compositions. The production was also more grandiose and less experimental compared to the more minimalist approach of her debut. While The Kick Inside had an organic, ethereal quality, Lionheart is more theatrical, with songs like "Hammer Horror" and "Wow" leaning heavily into dramatic narratives.
While Lionheart is often seen as one of Kate Bush's less successful albums, it marked an important moment in her career. The experience of working under pressure and the frustration she felt with the production process influenced her decision to take full creative control in the future. On subsequent albums, such as The Dreaming and Hounds of Love, Bush became more involved in every aspect of the production, from songwriting to engineering. Lionheart can be viewed as a turning point where Bush began to refine her distinct voice, both musically and artistically, preparing her for the more ambitious projects that followed.
